Woo pig soooie! History behind the beloved ‘Hog Call'

If you live in the state of Arkansas you know what the 'Hog Call' is... Woo pig soooie! But do you know the history behind it?

Author:
Laura Monteverdi , KTHV

Published:
10:02 AM CDT August 31, 2017

Updated:
12:04 PM CDT August 31, 2017

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (KTHV) - Very few schools can boast about having a cheer as memorable as the University of Arkansas.

The hog call can be heard at any Razorback sporting event, but many may wonder where did it come from?

THV11’s Laura Monteverdi helped us find the answer ahead of the Razorback season opener in Little Rock on Thursday night at War Memorial Stadium.

Several people THV11 asked did not know the origin of the call, but they did give us their best hog call. Tommy Smith, Roger Scott, David Bazzel and RJ Hawk are hosts of 103.7 The Buzz, a local sports radio show in Little Rock.

They had fun coming up with the origin. Smith said the Hog family who lives outside of Fayetteville started the call, while Scott believes it’s the plotline of the hit show, “Game of Thrones.”

Jim Harris, a sports contributor to THV11, said the call dates back to the 1920’s. However, he believes it may have been used as far back as 1909 when they first became the Razorbacks. And he was right!

According to an official statement from the University of Arkansas:

“There is no definitive, documented, in-writing start to the hog call. Although the student body officially changed Arkansas’ mascot from the cardinal to the Razorback in 1910, the famous battle cry did not get its start until nearly a decade later in the 1920’s. As a lagging, Razorback football team struggled to stay in the fight for the “W,” a group of farmers started squealing like hogs to offer encouragement. The farmers’ support seemed to work, as the Razorbacks came out victorious. The surrounding crowd took notice and put their nonsensical squeals to use at the next game when a group of men organized the ‘Woo Pig Soooie’ cheer.”

The university said the hog call has evolved over the years. And the official spelling of ‘Soooie’ was only agreed upon a few years ago.